Center square, traffic light projects in Waynesboro to start in late 2008

December 12, 2007|By JENNIFER FITCH

WAYNESBORO, Pa. - The reconfiguration of center square, paving of Main Street and synchronization of downtown traffic lights won't be finished until 2009, a representative of the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said Tuesday.

The project, which has spent a decade in development, is on target to start in August or September 2008, said Mike Lapano, a project manager with PennDOT.

Customized pieces such as fluted poles that need to be ordered and a state prohibition on paving after mid-October will push the at-least $2 million endeavor into the next calendar year, Lapano said.

Borough officials met Tuesday morning with Lapano to tweak the traffic light specifications. All eyes were on Lapano when he talked about the delay for the project previously planned for early 2008.

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The council members, borough engineer and borough manager made few changes to the engineered plans before them, saying expediency was paramount.

"It's sort of an understatement that this is a priority," Lapano said. "This project has waited too long."

Center square will be "closed" as it is tightened from the existing layout, which controls the flow of traffic with double sets of lights in each direction. The reconfiguration will make Center Square a more traditional intersection and the only one to stop all traffic for pedestrians.

For other intersections, "pedestrians who want to cross will have to press a button," Lapano said.

The LED lights will be controlled from a central device at borough hall, Borough Manager Lloyd Hamberger said.

The lights will respond to radio signals so that Main Street (Pa. 16) isn't cluttered by overhead wires, Lapano said.

"What we have to do is go in Washington Township and connect to Welty Road," he said.

New traffic lights could be synchronized with the transponder if added in the future, Lapano said.

The plan had been to fill in Center Square's crosswalks with brick pavers, but Lapano asked that stamped concrete be used instead. Borough officials recommended the imprinted asphalt they used on South Mulberry Avenue and said they have concerns about the durability of pavers anyway.

Hamberger said no specific detours have been established to be used during the efforts and that drivers probably will have to figure out their own routes.

Know more in 30 seconds

The issue: The Borough of Waynesboro is slated to have its Center Square reconfigured and Main Street traffic lights synchronized.

What happened: In November 1998, the borough council agreed to reconfigure the square. A new council later reversed that decision and the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation said the municipality should be responsible for engineering costs. A final design was approved in October 2005.

What's next: Bids for construction work, which has been estimated at $2 million, have been scheduled to go out in the summer of 2008. Construction would start that fall and be complete in 2009.